King of the Mountain’s President Steve Brunner grew up in the blue-collar town of Kenosha, Wis. At 12, he had the opportunity to travel to Puerto Rico to play in an international basketball tournament. “It changed my life,” he said, admitting the impact of that moment; realizing he wanted to make sports his livelihood still […]

When Garrison Ortiz says he had to work to get to where he is today, he isn’t kidding. The Pueblo native and county commissioner was raised by his mother and extended family, and recalls, while campaigning, trying to convince his grandmother to vote for him. “She said it depended on where I stood on the […]

Tom Ashley and his family boomeranged back to Colorado Springs when the veteran banker joined ANB Bank four weeks ago as community bank president. His family, which includes his wife and their two sons, had lived here before a stint in Denver and most recently in Carbondale, west of Aspen. In his spare time, he […]

When Aikta Marcoulier took over the Colorado Springs Small Business Development Center in 2012, she thought she might have been in over her head. She’d weathered four rounds of interviews with some of the most prominent names in the business community, and the decision to hire her, in retrospect, was wise. Her ability to attract […]

Shawna Kemppainen looks forward every day to get to work. That’s because each day is an opportunity to help a youth who is experiencing homelessness in Colorado Springs. Originally from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (Kemppainen describes herself as a yooper, for the U.P.), she spent 16 years in Arizona before moving to Colorado Springs. She studied […]

As an increasing number of Colorado Springs residents are choosing downtown jobs and lifestyles, businesspeople like Gretchen Moran stand ready to serve them.
Moran is the manager of Tejon Street Grocery Deli, which opened the first week of May and caters to young professionals, loft owners and people on the go.
The former New York native who appreciates access to gourmet foods, fine cheeses, prepared deli meals as well as everyday milk-bread-and-snack fare, says she looks forward to growing with the downtown community.

* Name: Nancy Kelly * Organization: Syntrak International * Position: Managing director * Hometown: Traverse City, Mich. * How long have you lived in Colorado Springs: 21 years * Education: BA – Michigan State, MA – University of Washington, studied German at the University of Wurzburg in Germany * A few words about your company: […]

As founder and president of marketing research company Elevated Insights, Debbie Balch has structured her business around the three Rs: research, results and revenue. With a degree in marketing from the University of Texas at Austin and years of experience in independent consulting and market research for brands such as Frito-Lay, PepsiCo and Starbucks, Balch […]

Stockman Kast Ryan & Co. was started in 1985 by two former Deloitte and Touche employees. Ten years later, they added a third partner, Eric Ryan.
With more than 50 employees, the accounting firm provides business services to a variety of corporate clients.

When Sallie Clark leaves office in January 2017 at the end of her third term as an El Paso County commissioner, she will join an elite group of long-serving local elected officials such as Bob Isaac, Terry Harris and Marcy Morrison. She ran for office a total of six times, serving on City Council between […]

* Name: Michael Hannigan * Organization: Pikes Peak Community Foundation * Position: Executive director * Hometown: Denver * How long have you lived in Colorado Springs: Off and on since 1971 * Education: Bachelor’s degree in geology from Colorado College; master’s degree in Education from the University of Colorado * A few words about your […]

Despite successes in the courtroom — including a $300 million settlement in a national class action suit — Bill Maywhort’s fondest wish is success on the golf course. Maywhort, an associate at Holland & Hart in Colorado Springs, specializes in product liability, corporate securities and environmental law. He has tried more than 100 cases that […]